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Political situation in Nepal
Shah sworn in as Nepal's youngest prime minister

On Friday, Nepal's new prime minister Balendra Shah was sworn in after the election earlier in March, several media outlets report. Shah, who is a former rapper, and his party won a landslide victory, which led the president to appoint him prime minister.

35-year-old Shah is the country's youngest prime minister to date and he takes over power in the country at a time of unrest. The previous government was overthrown last fall after massive protests and there is great dissatisfaction among residents with the established parties.

His party has about two-thirds of the seats in parliament.

Elections in Hungary
Pensioner Gábor: Viktor Orbán is taking our money

The organization Transparency International assesses that Hungary is the most corrupt country in the EU. Ahead of the upcoming election, many are frustrated by the wealth that seems to flow around Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, reports AFP.

Orbán claims to live a simple life, but several of his family members and friends have become very wealthy since he took power 16 years ago. At the same time, large parts of the population are being hit hard by low growth, high inflation and shortcomings in welfare.

“It’s our money, not theirs. But they spend it as if they owned it all themselves,” says 81-year-old retired teacher Gábor Szebenyi, according to the news agency.

According to political scientist Zoltan Ranschburg, the government has managed to avoid criticism over the years as long as the economic situation has been good for Hungarians.

“But it hasn’t been for several years.”

Middle East Crisis  Reactions
Merz: US unlikely to achieve regime change in Iran

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says it is unlikely that the US and Israel will succeed in implementing regime change in Iran, AFP reports.

– Is regime change really the goal? If so, I don't think it can be achieved. In previous conflicts, it has mostly gone wrong, he says at a forum in Frankfurt.

He also questions whether there is a strategy at all to achieve regime change, and whether it has been implemented successfully.

US President Donald Trump has criticized NATO for not participating in the war, most recently regarding the Strait of Hormuz, but also previously when several countries denied the US the use of their military bases.

Merz dismisses the criticism and says that it is "not our war". At the same time, he says at the forum that Germany may contribute military protection in the Strait of Hormuz, if a ceasefire is achieved.

Middle East Crisis  Economic Impact
India Strengthens Ties with Russia – to Get Gas

India and Russia want to deepen their cooperation on energy, Reuters reports. The countries have agreed to resume supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia, sources told the news agency.

The news comes just months after India reduced imports of Russian crude oil through an agreement with the United States. The administration lowered tariffs in exchange for India reducing its dependence on Russia.

Since the United States, together with Israel, attacked Iran, global energy prices have soared. A large part of India's oil and gas imports go through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been closed as a result of the war.

The Indian government has told the country's energy companies to prepare for the possibility that fossil gas will soon be able to be imported from Russia again. The parties have also discussed opportunities for Russia to increase crude oil exports again.